Diagnosis of Substance Abuse & Addiction Issues & Troubled Teens

After arrival the Sunset Bay Academy student is interviewed by our psychotherapist. At that time the SBA program is presented and explained thoroughly, and we answer all the questions the teen might have about our program and his/her recovery process. From there we proceed with a diagnostic interview with the psychotherapist.

The in-depth diagnostic interview enables the therapist to understand the teen’s addiction patterns and behaviors in greater detail. The goal is for the therapist to get a complete picture of the student’s psychological makeup. After compiling data from the patient’s clinical observation, careful evaluation, and current state, the therapist makes a diagnosis and sets up the treatment plan. This allows the therapist to detect areas of the teen’s personality that offer an opportunity for improvement.

This phase of the program plays a key role in determining the recovery process. It allows the clinicians to understand each teen’s personal history and how the drug use and/or addiction began. This intimate knowledge of the student’s issues permits our team of behavioral health professionals to design a unique treatment plan that best helps the teen’s recovery.

There are major areas that our health professionals evaluate in order to make a precise and accurate diagnosis:

Psychosocial and Environmental problems that may be affecting the teen.

In addition to these in-depth interviews, we gather relevant information about the teen’s behavior patterns by means of observation and non verbal communication. Our clinicians make sure to collect data from the patient’s parents or guardians, more than relying on the teen’s verbal responses during the initial interviews. By using this procedure, information is much more trustworthy, this allows our professionals to make an accurate diagnosis.